


Murder Under Sunlight [sequel of Healing Below Zero]

by Elle_est_vivant



Series: Ice King/Goatfather/Llamadad AU [2]
Category: Hermitcraft RPF, MindCrack RPF
Genre: Etho is dead...or is he, Gen, M/M, note: won't really make sense if you haven't read the prequel, sequel to Healing Below Zero, totally not angst, will history repeat itself?
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-01-16
Updated: 2021-01-29
Packaged: 2021-03-13 07:36:18
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 1,119
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28774692
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Elle_est_vivant/pseuds/Elle_est_vivant
Summary: Etho died. This was a fact, he died, Beef saw it happen, no one could've saved him.But everything changed when Beef, now the Llamadad, received a note saying Matilda is still alive.If history could be defied once, it could be defied twice.And on he went, defying history.
Relationships: Arek Lisowski | Keralis/John | BDoubleO100, Etho/Daniel M. | VintageBeef
Series: Ice King/Goatfather/Llamadad AU [2]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2109666
Comments: 4
Kudos: 18





	1. Hope

**Author's Note:**

> Someone dmed me on Wattpad and we had a discussion about suffixes of people, and I found it interesting, and it inspired me to put this here.
> 
> -trix is historically for women, and -or is historically for men. the discussion was centered on how Etho and Doc and eventually Beef should've been Perditors and not Perditrixs.
> 
> Now, to be completely honest, both words are a bit cringey when I was writing the book and trying terms out. It sounds too original and this is a serious problem when writing fanfics. So yeah, if you found the term cringey, don't worry, me too. But we have to go with it because with my pathetic intelligence I cannot think of a non-cringey replacement.
> 
> And why did I not choose Perditor which matches their gender?
> 
> ...it sounds like a profession and not an all powerful title. it sounds like aviator or instructor. because it's a suffix that people still uses commonly today.
> 
> Also for the meme that Etho is the Ice Queen.

_‘I found Matilda.’_ That was all the note said. 

Beef fiddled with that piece of paper mindlessly, his heart battling between trusting what Etho once said and that sentence.

Etho said Matilda died, he said he saw it happen. But this Keralis person was now telling him Matilda is still alive.

_Matilda_ is still alive.

Suddenly something sparked. Beef knew that what he was thinking was theoretically impossible, but he still couldn’t help but think about it.

Matilda died, that was for sure, Matilda died in Etho’s arms, Etho wouldn’t lie to him, but someone had found her.

Etho also died. Etho died in front of his eyes, he saw the light that ended his life, but…

He suddenly stood up from the sofa, a new type of light in his eyes, a light that resembled motivation, determination, and most importantly, new hope.

_No matter how slim the chances, I’ll bring Etho back._

_I will bring Etho back._

_I will._

He stepped out of the hacienda, now beautifully rebuilt, the sun shining bright on the clean, flawless roofs. 

  
  



	2. Deception

It was reasonable to start with meeting up with this Keralis person. Beef grabbed a generous box of diamond, thought about it for a second, and added some more into the box. After all, it wasn’t like he was running low on those, and even if he was he’d still pay anything for Matilda.

It wasn’t just anything. It was the only visible hope of getting Etho back.

They scheduled to meet at Keralis’s construction company, and Beef got there way too early. He waited for Keralis a bit impatiently, scanning the surrounding areas as he paced around.

Over in a pen nearby there were a lot of llamas. He saw one that was similar to Matilda, but he knew it wasn’t her. He walked over to them, and they all surrounded him, forming a semicircle on the fence of the pen.

It wasn’t until he heard a llama bleat behind him did he realise Keralis was already there.

‘So you’re Keralis?’ He turned around, and the man with a lead in his hand nodded. He had unproportionally large eyes, making him appear constantly shocked, and it made Beef uncomfortable.

‘I think this is Matilda. I found her… umm… in the woods.’ Keralis handed the lead to him, and he kneeled down, examining the llama.

There was a name tag on her neck, the same leather band and the same copper plaque as the one he tied on to her years ago. She looked about right, a bit skinnier than Beef remembered, but within reason. Same creamy beige fluff, same perked up ears, same black watery eyes.

But something didn’t feel right.

‘Are you sure this is Matilda?’ Beef suddenly asked, the question coming out of his mouth before his mind told him to. 

Keralis was visibly nervous.

‘I mean, of course I’m not familiar with how exactly she looks, she wasn’t my pet, and I think this one is her so I brought her here… So will I get rewards?’

Beef filtered most of Keralis’s blabbering out of his ears. He ran his hand over the llama’s neck, the expression in his eyes getting darker by the second.

He suddenly turned his head around, scaring Keralis as the latter jumped back.

‘Why are you still here?’

‘I… my… I thought there’d be rewards for finding…’ Keralis stammered, and after he saw what looked like fury in Beef’s expression, he shut up.

‘For finding a random llama, pretending it’s Matilda, and attempting to trick me. You better run now.’

Keralis didn’t need him to finish his sentence before taking off immediately, spamming rockets just so Beef wouldn’t catch up.

  
  
  
  


It took a while for the despair to really hit. 

For the past two days, he thought he would see miracle in front of his eyes. He thought he would see the clue that, when he tracks it down to the very end, could lead him to Etho.

He thought there was a way to get Etho back. There was a way to correct everything and to pull everything back to what it should be. There was a way to make life good again. 

He felt used. 

  
  
  
  
  


The llama went home with him, he decided in the end that this animal did nothing wrong and deserved a proper home. However, he knew that  _ someone  _ didn’t.

Despair felt less exciting and tense than he remembered it to be. It felt more like exhaustion, where all his motivation for simply living was drained away and he was left with an empty shell.

At that moment, he wished that he’d never met Etho. It’s always harder to lose something he once had than to never have it.

The llama didn’t know. The llama was excited to see a clean barn with abundant hay bales and water. The llama liked Beef and nuzzled his hand.

Beef sighed. Keralis didn’t even do a good job at tricking him, the llama he brought wasn’t even a girl, not to mention  _ the _ girl Matilda. He couldn’t even tell apart the difference between a male and female llama, and he still dared to trick him.

Maybe he was too nice a person. 

Maybe he should’ve been like Etho and kept himself distant and cold from his acquaintances. He was not an experienced superpower yet and did not imagine people would use him like this.

Or even, maybe he should’ve been like Doc.

  
  
  
  


Beef named the llama Brian. It was unfitting to call him by such a female name, and, even if he were a girl, he wasn’t Matilda.

There was only one Matilda, just like there was only one Etho, and he’d do anything to defend even just the concept of them.

He never harmed anyone, despite how easy it was for him. Some people were annoying, but he chose to forgive or ignore them. 

Not this time.

  
  
  
  
  


Keralis was nowhere to be found in his concrete city. This was expected, Beef warned him and gave him a chance to escape, and Beef circled around the skyscrapers, maneuvering his elytra skilfully. Nothing alive was to be in sight, no Keralis, no workers, nothing apart from the llamas locked up in the prison-like zoo pen.

Beef landed and opened the gate, watching them scatter.

_ Go. Be free. Live your happy lives.  _

He pulled out the flint and steel from his pockets, silently watching from a rooftop the llamas run around aimlessly but find the path to the surrounding wilderness in no time.

As he watched the now truly empty city burn in flames, he finally realised how fun it was to be a villain and to seek revenge.

Really, really fun.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope that those who decided to return my kneecaps will keep their promise after reading this chapter


End file.
